Seeking Pagan spirituality as a community.

It is my nature to  want some kinship in my  spiritual path. Not like minded copies of my own beliefs.  I  seek  conversations and points of view to  ponder on. People to  share activities with  that  are level headed in their thoughts. I  am unique , just like everyone else. Unique in looks, personality, history, and demeanor.  There is only one me and only one you.

The issue  here is that  Pagans are so  guarded in our private path  that  we keep  people at  arms length. So  many  are in a constant state of 'fight or flight" mentality. Sharing personal  paths is an endeavor to  walk  on eggshells . Any  difference of opinions must be internalized so  that  no  slight offense  ever occurs.

We value our individuality so much that  we are willing to  throw friendship away  for the smallest digress. We build these small  cliques of  spiritual  friends  to  maintain a feel of control.  making sure that  nobody else can enter and shift the focus in anyway.  We tend to  be solitary  practitioners just so  that  nobody can tell us to  do  something different. We are so  scared of being outed or ridiculed in our hometowns and work, that  we could work  with  a fellow pagan, and never know it. Cities both small  and large with  unknown pagan populations  refusing to  reach  out for others.

How can we change this? We need to  grow levels of acceptance for Pagans internally and externally. Internally is the harder of the two. Because nothing will  effect the external  until  we change what  is on the inside of each  and every Pagan. So  we have to  stop  being so  damn guarded and be able to  welcome those that  are different spiritually in our lives. It is sad that  most pagans are hypocrites in this manner.  They  can adopt and adapt their beliefs to  fit with  other Christians  in this Christian dominated society. Such  as celebrating Halloween instead of Samhain.  But these same Pagans won't budge for a fellow Pagan with  a different point of view.  Most will  runaway and hide if a Christian calls them satan worshippers,  but they  draw a line in the sand if a fellow Pagan offers a conflicting aspect of belief.

Where is the Pagan leadership to  help  with  this change? Nowhere and everywhere, we have Pagans with  limited leadership roles for small groups, but lack the ability to  close these gaps. SO  we need the old Pagan leadership to increase their efforts or get out of the way so  that  others can try.  But I  already  know the result if  anyone would try to  unite the various Pagan communities. They  will  be attacked and insulted for their actions.  Because Pagans will  not budge for other pagans that  don't follow their own beliefs exactly.  Pagans are blocking Pagan unity.  Let that sink in for a bit.

Why  would they do this? Well it is quite simple. There is a rebellion against any  dogma and anyone telling them how to  be a pagan.  If you look  at  the Wiccan rede, you will see a dividing point in Paganism. Some people say  that  it is only for the wiccans,  then there are wiccans that  try to  push it on all of Paganism. A challenge is to  write a document that  can create a bond between pagan groups, something that  can unify and be respectful to  all  Pagan groups.

I  have seen Pagans unify under a single banner on short lived occasions. They  need a massive push  to  cause this solidarity.  That  is the problem as well.  I  have seen Pagans and Pagan magazines  unite when a small  group  of people tried to  rewrite the "13 Principles of Wiccan belief".  Pagans worked hand in hand to  figure out that  what's and whys. But as soon as the threat was gone they  disbanded again.  The most recent event was the "witches around the world binding Donald Trump" event.  Sadly this last  event reflects how badly we need to  grow closer and of new leadership.  Isolated pockets of witches from across the world, mostly in the US, worked out of sync to  face a "threat" from Donald Trump.  There was infighting in the Pagan communities in the how's and whys people should do it.  In the end it was chaos and side A was mad at side B.

We have to  look  beyond our small  groups and covens and build a better Pagan community for the betterment of all  pagans.  We have divided and conquered ourselves into  this position. We must heal  our wounds and become stronger. In Christianity they have Baptists, Lutherans,  Methodists, and so many  more denominations. But they  can rally together as a Christian community quickly. Something that  we can't do.  That  has to  change for our beloved communities to  be closer and stronger.

We don't need a church  and a hierarchy. Churches are just buildings, any  place that  we feel  secure in would work.  We don't want a hierarchy to  tell us how to  walk  our path. We need people to  make sure that  we can walk  our path.  We need people that  can move beyond the spirituality and religious aspects and look  at  the community as a whole.  Instead of being priests and priestesses, they  would be administrators. Knowing that  only when the whole Pagan community is healthy that any  portion can be health.

So  what  is missing is the bond between Pagans. A spirituality  of kinship and respect. So  we have to  find all aspects that  we share to  build a mutual  spiritual document. Thus we have to  define and set a couple very general limitations on Paganism. Even the 13 principles of belief had very  vague limitations.  Pagans is Latin for Country Dweller.  It is a reference to the people that  worked the with  the earth and monitored the solar cycles.  It was a word to insult the farmers from the city living Christians.  I  want to  throw away  the old Christian dictionary definition of Paganism: "Any  belief that  is not of the Abrahamic beliefs".  There are many religions that  are stand alone beliefs and should be treated in this manner out of respect.  Now I  define Paganism as this: " Any  earth based  belief systems that  predate the Abrahamic beliefs and originate in the European and Mediterranean Sea. Thus leaving Hinduism, Buddhism, Native American beliefs and so many as stand alone religions.  Again , I  do  that  out of respect to  these religions.

Thus Paganism is an Earth/Sun based religious group.  We should write  a document  that  reflects these points, and with  it  create bonds to  unite not separate Pagans. Last  night I  written a brief  open ended poem  that  reflects that  goal. Just to  give an idea that  might work.

Our home is the Earth
it protects and it provides
Full of life and wonders
An Amazing beauty that  we can't deny.

In the Sky  is the Sun,
The provider of heat and light.
Showing us what  beauty we have
All we must do is open our eyes.

As the Earth does its dance
Life on the planet changes
Bound by  the cycles of life.
We honor them as they  change.

We live with  harmony in life
Taking only what  we need to live
Showing respect of all life.
We are one with  the world.

We go  by  many names and labels
Each sees the world uniquely inside.
We are Pagans, Heathens, Wiccans, and more
We are many  things, but just one people.

The next step is to  build  that  bigger Pagan community that  many  dream about.  But that  is only a dream if we can't transcend our differences. So I  shall  start with  myself.  I  am a solitary  Pagan, I know many  pagans online but few in close at hand.  I  shall  respect you, your beliefs, and our differences, please do  the same for me.  I  shall  not ask you about your beliefs to  criticize you.  I  will  ask  to  learn and understand you better.  I  may  place a label on you, but it isn't to  divide us but  to  understand you as a whole person.  Give me a chance to  see the world through your eyes.

Our Pagan communities are fractured and fragile.  So many  people demand 100% loyalty and acceptance. The slightest variant from this absolutism is met with horrific hatred and malice. A question or a different point of view is treated as an attack and being trolled.  An honest question by  someone being sincere can result in ridicule  by  many.  Pagans seem to  distrust or resent the outside world full of views that  don't conform to  their specific ideals.  And this will  be hard to  fix until we learn to  be better people.  How Can we be a spiritual  group when we are a house divided upon itself. How can we know of our amazing spiritual energy, when we can't open our eyes and hearts to  our fellow Pagan.

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